David Adelman, J.D.

Former Ambassador to Singapore & Managing Director and General Counsel, KraneShares

Ambassador (Ret.) David Adelman is a Managing Director and the General Counsel of KraneShares. He previously was a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong and partner in two global law firms practicing law in New York, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta. David was the 15th United States Ambassador to Singapore serving during the first term of the Obama-Biden Administration. He previously was an appointed member of the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s Capital Markets Committee and served on the Executive Board of the Hong Kong Treasury Markets Association. David was a member of the Board of Governors of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong. David is a Trustee of the National Committee on American Foreign Policy and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Advisory Board of the Israel-Asia Center. He is an Adjunct Professor at New York University where he teaches international relations of the Asia-Pacific region at the graduate level. David received his J.D. from Emory University where he is a recipient of the Emory Medal. He earned an M.P.A from Georgia State University and B.A. from the University of Georgia. David and his wife Caroline reside in New York City and have three adult children.

Kathryn Schloessman

President & CEO, Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission (LASEC)

Kathryn Schloessman is President & CEO of the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission (LASEC), a nonprofit organization officially designated to attract, secure, and support high-profile sports and entertainment events in Los Angeles. Schloessman leads LASEC’s strategic efforts to attract the most sought-after major events in the world and plays a crucial role in ensuring these events have an impact long after the fans go home by creating jobs, providing opportunities for local small and diverse businesses, and creating community legacy programs to build a more equitable region. Under Schloessman’s leadership, the Los Angeles region has been awarded more than a dozen major sporting events including the 2015 Special Olympics World Games, 2004, 2011 & 2018 NBA All-Star Weekends, 2017 NHL All-Star Game, Super Bowl LVI, 2022 MLB All-Star Game, 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship, 123rd U.S. Open Championship, 2026 U.S. Women’s Open and FIFA World Cup 2026™. LASEC continues to support the Local Organizing Committee for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games and is actively working to secure another NBA All-Star Game, another Super Bowl and Men and Women’s Rugby World Cup matches over the next decade.

Prior to joining LASEC, Schloessman was a 13-year veteran of CB Commercial (now CBRE), the largest commercial real estate company in the United States. As managing officer of CB Commercial’s Downtown Los Angeles office, she was responsible for business development, operations and management of the Los Angeles region’s office professionals and oversaw CB Commercial’s community relations efforts. Schloessman also served as marketing director for CB Commercial’s Western Division and has more than 10 years of experience as lead broker for major lease transactions in the Downtown Los Angeles market. Schloessman is an active member of Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

Renata Simril

President & CEO, LA84 Foundation

Ms. Simril is an accomplished civic and private sector trailblazer with more than 20 years of diversified experience with a commitment to leadership and service. She most recently served as Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff to the Publisher of the Los Angeles Times, where she oversaw staff operations and special projects. Her earlier career included three seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where she served as Senior Vice President of External Affairs overseeing the restoration of the Dodgers brand and the Dodgers Foundation; and over a decade in real estate development with Jones Lang LaSalle, Forest City Development and LCOR, Inc. Her public service included stints as Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Housing in the Hahn Administration, where she worked to expand rental and affordable housing in Los Angeles, and as a Development Deputy to Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, where she worked to help rebuild communities in South Los Angeles after the 1992 civil unrest. Ms. Simril began her career in the U.S. Army as a Military Police Officer in the U.S. and Germany. Ms. Simril is active in the community outside of LA84 Foundation, currently serving on the Boards of United Way of Greater Los Angeles; Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission and the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation. She formerly served as a Governor’s Appointee on the California Science Center Board, where she led successful negotiations of long-term lease agreements for USC to manage and operate the Coliseum and Sports Arena properties; as Chair of the Board of Regents for LMU; LA 2028 Olympic Bid Committee Board Member and as a member of the Lusk Center for Real Estate at USC. She was named to the Orange County Register’s 50 Most Powerful in Southern California Sports list in 2017 and to the Los Angeles Business Journal’s list of The Los Angeles 500 Most Influential People in 2016, 2017 and 2018. CSQ magazine named her a Visionary in Sports and Entertainment, 2017, and Simril received the WISE LA (Women in Sports and Entertainment) Women of Inspiration award in 2016.

Ms. Simril is a third generation Angeleno. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Studies from Loyola Marymount University and a Master’s Degree in Real Estate Development from USC. Ms. Simril resides in Studio City with her husband and two sons.

Julie Urhman

President and Co-Founder, Angel City Football Club (ACFC)

Julie Uhrman is the President and Co-Founder of Angel City Football Club (ACFC), Los Angeles' professional women's soccer team that debuted in 2022 in the National Women's Soccer League. ACFC is one of the world's only majority female-founded and run professional sports teams. Uhrman founded ACFC with Academy Award-winning actress and activist Natalie Portman, technology venture capitalist Kara Nortman. She was most recently named a member of the 2023 Sports Business Journal (SBJ) Game Changer class. She was listed as one of the Ten Influencers of 2023 by SportsPro Media, one of the Most Influential People in Sports Business 2022 by the SBJ, a member of Adweek's 2021 and 2020 Most Powerful Women In Sports, one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company, and was named to the Creative 50 list by Ad Age. In May of 2023, Angel City Football Club was named Sports Team of the Year by SBJ and was the first women's team ever to win the category.

Julie is active in the Los Angeles sports and technology communities. She is a board member of the LA Sports and Entertainment Council, The Rose Bowl Institute, and the LA Sports Council, and an active executive in the LA Chapter of WISE (Women in Sports and Events), where she was recognized as a 2022 Women of Inspiration Honoree. She is also part of the DraftKings' All-Star Network as an Advisor to Drive by DraftKings. Before ACFC, Uhrman served as the EVP and General Manager of OTT Ventures at Lionsgate, Head of Platform Business Development at Jaunt, a virtual reality content startup, and founder of OUYA, a pioneering Android-based game console.

Rachel Aguirre

Managing Director & Head of U.S. iShares Product, BlackRock

Rachel Aguirre, Managing Director, is the Head of U.S. iShares Product at BlackRock, bringing more than 15 years of deep portfolio management and investment expertise. She leads the team that creates the iShares product agenda, where she oversees the research and development of innovation and the commercialization of iShares ETFs. Her teams provide unparalleled access to the highest quality products, advancing overall financial well-being for iShares clients.

Rachel joined BlackRock in 2005, including her years with Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. Rachel has held various investor positions within the ETF and Index Investing (EII) Markets and Investments Engine including her role as Head of US iShares Product Engineering, and Co-Head of the Americas Portfolio Management team, where she oversaw the teams managing iShares ETFs and Institutional Index product ranges.

In addition to her role, Rachel is BlackRock's liaison to the U.S. iShares Board of Directors, and coordinates with our Board Governance, Strategy, L&C and other key BlackRock partners to drive connectivity with the Board. Rachel is also a member of the Americas iShares Executive Committee and the EII Global Product Executive Committee.

Rachel holds a BS degree in Mathematics from the College of Creative Studies at UC Santa Barbara, and a Masters in Financial Mathematics from Stanford University. She is a classically trained pianist and continues to play music today. She currently resides in California's San Francisco Bay Area.

Brendan Ahern

Chief Investment Officer, KraneShares

Brendan Ahern is the Chief Investment Officer at KraneShares. Brendan joined KraneShares in 2013. Brendan leads the firm’s research and education efforts and actively works with investors on a variety of subjects ranging from asset allocation to trading to articulating the growing influence that index providers hold in the asset management industry. Prior experience includes over ten years with Barclays Global Investors (subsequently BlackRock’s iShares), which he joined in 2001 during the rollout of their ETF business. His career has spanned a period of tremendous growth for ETFs, which has contributed to his profound knowledge of the ETF landscape.

Brendan is considered a preeminent expert in global financial markets with a particular focus on China. He is a frequent visitor to China and actively maintains daily contact with a deep local research network comprised of investment banks, brokers, and regional and boutique research firms. He produces a daily update called China Last Night (www.chinalastnight.com), which also appears as a column on Forbes.com. He is often sought after by leading business and financial outlets and regularly appears on CNBC and Bloomberg to discuss China’s capital markets. He is a frequent guest of Bloomberg Radio’s Daybreak Asia, and he is quoted in The Wall Street Journal and Investor’s Business Daily.

Brendan graduated from the College of the Holy Cross and has a Master of Science in Financial Analysis from the University of San Francisco.

Scott Borenstein

Investment Partner, Canyon Partners

Scott Borenstein is an Investment Partner at Canyon. Mr. Borenstein joined Canyon in 2010 and serves as a Co-Portfolio Manager for the Canyon Capital Solutions Fund. Additionally, Mr. Borenstein oversees a team that primarily focuses on investments in the media, telecom, transportation, metals and mining, and broader industrials sectors. Prior to joining Canyon, Mr. Borenstein worked at Oaktree Capital Management and at Spark Capital. Mr. Borenstein’s previous experience also includes Business Development at Overture Services and consulting for a variety of Fortune 500 companies at McKinsey & Company. Mr. Borenstein is a graduate of Princeton University (A.B., School of Public and International Affairs, Honors) and Harvard Business School (M.B.A., Baker Scholar).

Michael C. Buchanan, CFA

Co-Chief Investment Officer, Western Asset Management Company, LLC

Michael Buchanan is Western Asset’s Co-Chief Investment Officer and has been in the fixed-income industry since 1990. As Co-CIO, he leads the Global and US Strategy Committees with Ken Leech. Michael has direct oversight of Western Asset’s Global Credit Team, which covers the US and non-US investment- grade, high-yield and bank loan sectors, as well as the Firm’s Structured Credit and Emerging Market Teams. He also leads the Global Credit Committee, which ultimately determines overall firmwide credit themes. Prior to joining Western Asset in 2005, Michael served as Managing Director and Head of US Credit Products at Credit Suisse Asset Management and as Executive Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Janus Capital Management. He also worked at BlackRock Financial Management as Managing Director and Portfolio Manager and at Conseco Capital Management as Vice President and Portfolio Manager. Michael graduated with honors from Brown University. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, and is a CFA® Charterholder.

Etan Butler

Chair, Dalmore Group

Etan Butler is the charismatic and innovative Chair of Dalmore Group, a FINRA registered national Broker Dealer Investment Bank, founded in 2005. Along with others on Dalmore’s leadership team, Etan has led the meteoric growth of Dalmore, moving from a standard provision of a full range of traditional investment banking services, to industry leading specialization in assisting companies that seek to raise investment capital from individual investors through the SEC’s Regulation D, Regulation A+ and Regulation CF. Etan has been the face and the voice of Dalmore as it has become the leading Broker Dealer for Regulation A+ offerings — having already served as Broker Dealer on more than 270 such offerings – including some of the most successful Regulation A+ offerings in history. Etan is a regular speaker and lecturer on innovation and customization of funding programs under new opportunities sanctioned by the SEC. He is recognized as an innovative pioneer in the Regulation A+ and Crowd Funding industry, is an active participant in industry summits, panels, interviews, and publications, and was awarded industry leader of the year at the 2022 Equity Crowdfunding Awards. Over the course of their 18+ years of investment banking activity, Etan and his team have been involved in the development of cutting edge and regulatory compliant approaches for the management of business development and the oversight of complex due diligence activities in the heavily regulated area of U.S. and multinational transactions. Etan is also President of EMB Capital, LLC, which invests in early-stage ventures with a focus on fintech. Etan is a graduate of the Yeshiva University’s Sy Syms School of Business, and is registered with FINRA as a General Securities Principal (Series 24, 7 and 63). He is married with three children, and lives in New York.

Kent Chan

Equity Investment Director, Capital Group

Kent Chan is an equity investment director at Capital Group. He has 31 years of investment industry experience and has been with Capital Group for seven years. Prior to joining Capital, Kent spent more than 20 years in Asia, most recently as a director of equity research for Greater China at Barclays. Before that, his research responsibilities included global technology, Asian consumer and small cap companies at Citigroup. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political economics from the University of California, Berkeley. Kent is based in San Francisco.

Cleo Chang

Senior Vice President & Chief Investment Solutions Officer, American Century Investments

Cleo Chang is senior vice president and Chief Investment Solutions Officer for American Century Investments, an independent, privately controlled, pure-play asset management firm founded in 1958. As Chief Investment Solutions Officer, Chang is the firm’s most senior investment management executive responsible for setting the strategic direction of American Century’s exchanged traded fund (ETF) initiatives. Chang also serves as a member of the Avantis Investments leadership team to help with global client demand and to deepen cross- team connectivity and collaboration. She is a member of American Century’s Management Committee, a senior leadership team responsible for establishing and executing strategic priorities. Ms. Chang is co-executive sponsor of American Century’s Mosaic business resource group, which represents different minority groups, ethnicities, and cultural backgrounds, and is dedicated to linking the firm’s work with its internal and external communities and providing a space that allows teammates to be their authentic selves. Prior to joining American Century, Chang was chief investment officer and managing director with Wilshire Funds Management. As CIO, Chang oversaw all investment-related functions, including manager research, portfolio management and investment research for both traditional and alternative asset classes. Previously, she was the head of investment research, responsible for creating investment solutions and asset allocation frameworks. Earlier in her career, Chang served as manager of investments with Harris myCFO Investment Advisory Services, a subsidiary of Bank of Montreal. She earned her BA in economics from the University of California, Berkeley and an MS in mathematical finance from the University of Southern California. She also holds an MBA with a concentration in finance from the Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California.

Yishai Cohen

CEO, Landa

Yishai Cohen is the founder and CEO of Landa. Prior to founding Landa, Cohen was the founder of SmartBus, a B2B transportation platform, which was acquired in 2016. Cohen has extensive experience in internet and mobile products, marketplaces, and technology.

Nancy Davis

Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Quadratic Capital

Nancy Davis founded Quadratic Capital in 2013. She is the portfolio manager for The Quadratic Interest Rate Volatility and Inflation Hedge ETF (NYSE Ticker: IVOL) and The Quadratic Deflation ETF (NYSE Ticker: BNDD). Both funds are Treasury funds that are long fixed income volatility. Nancy has been the recipient of numerous industry recognitions. Barron’s named her to their inaugural list of the "100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance." Institutional Investor called her a "Rising Star of Hedge Funds." The Hedge Fund Journal tapped her as one of "Tomorrow's Titans." Nancy began her career at Goldman Sachs where she spent nearly a decade, the last seven with the proprietary trading group where she rose to become the Head of Credit, Derivatives and OTC Trading. Prior to founding Quadratic Capital Management, she served as a portfolio manager at JP Morgan’s Hedge Fund Highbridge Capital Management

Scott Davis

ETF Director, Capital Group

Scott T Davis is an ETF director at Capital Group, home of American Funds. He has 16 years of industry experience and has been with Capital Group for 15 years. Prior to his current role, Scott led product development across Capital Group. Earlier in his career he held various strategy and finance roles for Capital Group, Hostess Brands and Boeing. He holds an MBA from University of Southern California and a bachelor's degree in management science from University of California San Diego. Scott is based in Los Angeles.

Bill Fagan

Senior Managing Director & North American Head of Multi-Asset Strategy, State Street Global Markets

Bill joined KraneShares in 2017 and lead’s the firm’s efforts across the Western U.S. & Canada. Prior to joining KraneShares, Bill worked at BlackRock with a focus on both traditional and alternative investment strategies. Bill received his Bachelor’s in Science from Duquesne University, with a focus on Finance & Investment Management. Bill lives in San Francisco.

Lee Ferridge

Senior Managing Director & North American Head of Multi-Asset Strategy, State Street Global Markets

Lee Ferridge is a senior managing director and the North American Head of Multi-Asset Strategy for State Street Global Markets. Mr. Ferridge and his team formulate foreign exchange, fixed income and equity market views for State Street’s range of clients utilizing unique proprietary indicators. Lee has over 15 years’ experience as a macro strategist in addition to holding previous roles as a proprietary trader. Lee has BS in economics and business economics and as well as a master’s degree in quantitative finance. He is a frequent commentator in the financial press — both written and TV — and has written articles for numerous industry publications.

Nikki Gilbreth

Director of Business Development, North Capital Investment Technology

Nikki Gilbreth is a Director of Business Development at North Capital Investment Technology and joined the company in 2019. North Capital provides infrastructure technology and services to streamline the offering and investment process for alternative investments. Nikki actively works with platforms and issuers that are raising capital for alternative investments to implement solutions aligned to the structure of the offering. Prior to joining North Capital, Nikki worked directly with investors in her position on the Investor Relations team at RealtyMogul and also worked as an advisor with Equitable. Nikki graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in Business Finance and currently holds the FINRA Series 7, 66, and 24 licenses.

Jonathan Grabel

Chief Investment Officer, Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association (LACERA)

Jonathan Grabel is the CIO for the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association (LACERA). Mr. Grabel manages a $73 billion defined benefit pension fund on behalf of LACERA's 185,000 active and retired members. He also oversees the investments for the LACERA-administered $3 billion healthcare benefits program. Prior to LACERA, Mr. Grabel was the CIO for New Mexico PERA, where he oversaw the investments for the agency’s $15 billion defined benefit fund and the associated PERA SmartSave deferred compensation plan. Previously, he was a general partner at a private equity firm focused on growth-stage investments in technology, networking industries, and digital communications. Earlier in his career, Mr. Grabel was an investment banker. Mr. Grabel received his BS in economics from the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business and his MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He is a CPA (inactive).

Robin Greenwood, Ph.D.

George Gund Professor of Finance and Banking, Harvard Business School

Robin is the George Gund Professor of Finance and Banking at Harvard Business School and the Anne and James F. Rothenberg Faculty Fellow. He serves as the Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Research. He is past faculty director of the Behavioral Finance and Financial Stability project, chair of the Business Economics PhD program, and head of the Finance Unit (2018-2021). He is a member of the Financial Advisory Roundtable of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economics Research.

Robin's research is in behavioral and institutional finance, with a particular focus on "macro-level" market inefficiencies such as stock price bubbles and predictable financial crises. He has also coauthored research on the role of government and central banks in the debt markets. His research awards include the 2015 Brattle Group Distinguished Paper for an outstanding corporate finance paper published in the Journal of Finance, the Fama-DFA Prize for best paper published in 2019 in the area of capital markets and asset pricing in the Journal of Financial Economics (second place), and the inaugural 2014 Jack Treynor Prize awarded by the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance.

Robin received a Ph.D. from Harvard in Economics, and B.S. degrees in Economics and Mathematics at MIT. He has taught in both years of the MBA curriculum as well as the PhD program.

David Heiny

Managing Director, Artisan Partners

David J. Heiny is a managing director of Artisan Partners and a business leader for the firm’s Developing World team. Mr. Heiny was previously responsible for a range of functions including defined contribution practice leadership, oversight of marketing and communications at the firm, and institutional business development for the Artisan Partners Growth Team and the Small Cap Growth strategy. Prior to joining Artisan Partners in August 2000, Mr. Heiny was a credit analyst with First Chicago (presently JPMorgan Chase). Mr. Heiny holds a bachelor’s degree in business from Miami University and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Mark A. Hughes, CFA

Portfolio Manager & Research Analyst, Western Asset Management Company, LLC

Mark Hughes, CFA is a Portfolio Manager and Research Analyst in Western Asset’s Pasadena office, and specializes in emerging markets (EM). His responsibilities include formulating strategy for EM corporate credit exposures across the Firm and leading the EM corporate credit research effort. In 2009 Mark joined Western Asset’s Global Credit Team as a Research Analyst responsible for the autos, industrials and media sectors. Prior to joining the Firm, he served as a Senior Vice President of Credit Research at Pacific Investment Man¬agement Company (PIMCO). He has also been a Financial Analyst for W.R. Huff Asset Management and an Investment Banking Associate for Seattle-Northwest Securities. Mark has 25 years of industry experience and holds a Bachelor of Arts from Willamette University and an MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Tech¬nology’s Sloan School of Management. He is also a CFA® charterholder.

Y. Allen Kim, CFA

Director of Investment Strategy Group, Bel Air Investment Advisors

Allen Kim, CFA is the Director, Investment Strategy Group at Bel Air Investment Advisors and is a voting member of the Investment Committee. He oversees the investment manager platform at Bel Air and provides asset class research. Allen’s responsibilities also include setting manager research guidelines and providing advisor education and research communications.

Allen has over two decades of experience in the investment management industry. Before joining Bel Air in 2022, Allen was Director of Manager Research and Investment Solutions and a member of the Investment Committee at Kayne Anderson Rudnick, where he oversaw the investment platform for the Wealth Advisory division. He has also worked in numerous roles at Savos Investments (formerly Genworth Financial Asset Management) and Cetera Financial Group (formerly ING).

Allen earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from The George Washington University and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University. He is a CFA charterholder and chairs the Alternative Investments Advisory Council of the CFA Society of Los Angeles. He and his wife reside in the Los Angeles area and volunteer with The Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa Research Association of America.

Ryan Kimmel

Analyst - Macro-Asset Allocation – DoubleLine

Mr. Kimmel joined DoubleLine in 2013. He is an Analyst for the firm’s Multi-Asset Growth Strategy. Prior to DoubleLine, Mr. Kimmel was a Proprietary Trader at The Gelber Group, trading currencies for the Foreign Currency Group. Previous to that he was an Investment Banking Analyst in Morgan Stanley’s Mergers and Acquisitions Group. Mr. Kimmel holds a B.A. in Business Economics from the University of California, Los Angeles and holds an MBA from the Anderson School of Management at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Mary Lang

Head of Americas Direct Logistics Strategies & Portfolio Manager, CBRE

Mary Lang is Head of Americas Direct Logistics Strategies and serves as a Portfolio Manager for a fund sponsored by the firm. Mary, who began her career in the asset management industry in 2000, joined CBRE Investment Management in 2021 from Prologis, Inc. There she most recently served as the Global Head of Data Center Strategy & Solutions, as well as Senior Vice President of Americas Dispositions. Mary’s accomplishments include the formation of several merchant development joint ventures to facilitate the conversion of logistics assets to powered-shell and turnkey data center solutions; the post-merger integration of AMB Property Corp., KTR Capital Partners, DCT Industrial Trust and Liberty Property Trust; and the disposition of more than $6 billion in industrial, retail, development and land sales from balance sheet and private capital ventures during her 17-year tenure with Prologis. Mary earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the New York Foundation for the Arts.

Jane Leung, CFA, CFP

Strategic Advisor, Hive Wealth

Jane Leung, CFA, CFP is a strategic advisor at Hive Wealth, an innovative wealth platform that is creating social impact by democratizing the Family Office and providing opportunities for the 99% to build and grow meaningful multi-generational wealth. Prior to this role, she was Head of Investment Solutions and Chief Investment Officer at SVB Private, as well as CEO and President of SVB Investment Services. She also led SVB’s Modern Family Office and capital markets teams.

Prior to joining SVB, Jane was Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at Scenic Advisement, a boutique investment bank that helps high-growth, late-stage private technology companies attract strategic investors via secondary equity sales and primary financings. She also led the wealth management division, providing unique wealth management for entrepreneurs, blending both public and private asset management. Jane has also held senior executive roles at BlackRock/iShares, including Head of Asia Pacific iShares and Index Equity.

Partha Mamidipudi, PhD

Managing Director, BlackRock

Partha Mamidipudi, PhD, Managing Director, is the Head of Human Capital Research in the Retirement Solutions (RS) Team in Multi-Asset Strategies & Solutions (MASS).

As the Head of the Retirement Solutions Research team Partha is responsible for research and development of BlackRock's lifecycle and decumulation investment strategies globally. The research focuses on various aspects of Lifecycle investing, specifically human capital and labor income dynamics, as well as evolving demographic changes in populations to bring robust retirement solutions to our clients. This includes Blackrock's Target Date Fund offerings - LifePath, LifePath Paycheck, LifePath Dynamic. The team also supports other investment strategies in the Defined Contribution through partnerships with MASS and Retirement Group. Partha has led several key R&D initiatives in BlackRock. Prior to his current role, Partha was the Head of AWT Research Team Partha is responsible for developing new product and advisory solutions for financial advisors and partners across multiple channels. He led the research and product development of iRetire in multiple markets and was responsible for the development of CoRI indices. Before that Partha was the Head of Research for LifePath, as a part of the Defined Contribution (DC) team.

Partha's service with the firm dates back to 2004, including his years with Barclays Global Investors (BGI), which merged with BlackRock in 2009. At BGI, he worked in the Active Strategies Group in various roles, where he was responsible for development and enhancement of the portfolio analytics platform for Active Equities. Before joining BlackRock, Partha worked at Charles Schwab and Robertson Stephens developing efficient trading strategies and brokerage technology solutions. Earlier in his career, he worked as a Senior Engineer in the Marine Structures Group at Bechtel National Inc., where he was responsible for developing new analysis and solution methodologies for solving complex fluid-structure interaction problems for the oil companies and the U.S. Navy. Partha earned a B.Tech degree, with honors, in Naval Architecture from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India, and an MS and PhD from the University of California at Berkeley in Naval Architecture and Offshore Engineering.

Ned McGuire, CFA, FSA, FRM

Managing Director, Wilshire

Ned is a Managing Director at Wilshire and a member of the asset allocation team. He is responsible for researching and maintaining Wilshire’s proprietary asset allocation models, conducting asset allocation studies and also serves as a consultant to plan sponsors. Ned joined Wilshire in 2011. Previously, he worked as a risk management consultant overseeing asset-liability management and pension risk projects, and as an actuarial consultant to defined benefit plan clients.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from St. Olaf College and holds a master’s degree in operational research from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Ned is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst and Financial Risk Manager designations.

Paisley Nardini, CFA, CAIA

Strategist of Client Solutions, Invesco

Paisley Nardini, CFA, CAIA is a Strategist of Client Solutions for the Invesco Solutions team which develops and manages asset allocation strategies and comprehensive portfolio solutions across institutional and private client channels. In this role, she, and her team leverage Invesco’s fundamental, systematic and alternative strategies to deliver precise, tailored outcomes to unique investor needs. Ms. Nardini joined Invesco in 2018 as a portfolio advisory specialist. Prior to joining the firm, she held the roles of portfolio manager at a registered investment advisor, institutional relationship manager at PIMCO, and fixed income portfolio manager at Wells Capital Management. Ms. Nardini has been in the industry since 2011.Ms. Nardini earned a BBA degree in financial markets from the University of Minnesota –Duluth. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) charterholder and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) professional. Ms. Nardini is a director on the board of the CFA Society of Orange County in Southern California as well as an investment committee member for the Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County.

Ariel Nicholas

Vice President of Climate Sales Specialist, MSCI

Ariel Nicholas, member of the MSCI Climate Change Solutions Team, is responsible for communicating and educating financial market participants in North America on MSCI Climate Solutions data sets and tools for investment decision making, risk management, reporting and engagement. Ariel joined MSCI in 2017, where for two years she was a member of the MSCI Wealth Advisory team, then the past two years with the ESG & Climate Coverage Sales Team communicating to institutional investors in the Midwest region ESG investment trends and best practices. Prior to MSCI, Ariel worked at State Street Global Advisors for two years where she sold SPDR ETFs to wirehouse advisors in the Southern California region. Ariel graduated with a BA degree in History and Business from the University of Vermont.

Mary D. Nichols, J.D.

J.D. Vice-Chair, California-China Climate Institute

Mary D. Nichols is widely recognized for a career as one of the world’s most important environmental regulators. Nichols was appointed as Chair of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) under Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. (1975–82 and 2010–18), Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (2007–2010) and Governor Gavin Newsom (2019–2020). As chair of CARB, California’s powerful air-pollution and climate regulatory agency, she led California’s leading battle to cut smog and carbon emissions. Under Nichols’ leadership, CARB enacted the first comprehensive cap on industrial greenhouse gas emissions by any major regulatory agency in the world. Nichols and CARB also crafted and enforced regulations that slashed air pollution from cars and light trucks by over 99%, paved the way for a new generation of advanced biofuels, and created the roadmap for a transition to a fully electrified transportation system. Currently, Nichols is a faculty member at the UCLA School of Law, affiliated with the Emmett Institute. She holds the positions of Vice-Chair at the China-California Climate Center and Co-Chair of the Coalition for Reimagined Mobility. Additionally, she is a Fellow at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Nikki Noriega, CFA

Senior Client Portfolio Manager, Invesco

Nichola (Nikki) Noriega, CFA is a Senior Client Portfolio Manager for the Emerging Markets Equity team at Invesco. In this role, she is responsible for articulating the investment philosophy, process, strategy, and performance of the team. Ms. Noriega joined Invesco when the firm combined with Oppenheimer Funds in 2019. Before joining Oppenheimer Funds in 2012, she was a client portfolio manager at Federated Investors. She also held analyst positions at Deutsche Bank and Franklin Templeton. Ms. Noriega earned a BA degree in communications and political science from Hunter College. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst® (CFA) charterholder and holds the Series 7 and 63 registrations.

Luke Oliver

Managing Director & Head of Climate Investments, KraneShares

Luke Oliver leads the KraneShares Climate solutions business building innovative products that provide access to unique markets within this growing investment universe. In addition to curating the firm's climate, carbon and impact strategies, Luke works closely with clients to educate on the asset class and client implementation strategies. He is a regular industry commentator on TV, press, and online media and is responsible for digestible research on climate topics. Prior to joining KraneShares, Luke built and ran the $21bn US XTrackers ETF business at DWS (formerly Deutsche Asset Management) where he pioneered currency hedging, onshore China, and more recently ESG strategies which were among the first to recognize the need for value-aligned portfolios. Prior to this, he was the portfolio manager of $16bn in commodity assets across the PowerShares DB Commodity ETF suite. Luke has a reputation for building strong, diverse teams, creating profitable businesses, and bringing innovative solutions to market. His 20-year financial career also included time on the capital markets sell-side. This diverse experience has allowed Luke to identify the most powerful emerging trends in the investment landscape. “Pricing carbon emissions and decarbonizing the global economy is the single greatest challenge, and opportunity, we will ever be presented with. I have no doubt this will be our mission for the next 20 years and it must not fail.”

Nathan Palmer, CFA

Managing Director, Wilshire Associates

Nate is a Managing Director and heads Wilshire’s Multi-Asset Portfolio Management group. He has over 20 years of industry experience and is responsible for creating multi-asset class, multi-manager investment solutions for institutional and financial intermediary clients. He is the Chairman of Wilshire’s Retirement Oversight Committee and Vice Chairman of the Wilshire Investment Committee. Before joining Wilshire, Nate provided investment advice to clients at Convergent Wealth Advisors. Previously, he managed the public market investment portfolios for the endowment at the California Institute of Technology and for the defined benefit and defined contribution retirement assets at Intel Corporation. Nate began his career as a securities analyst in New York. Nate graduated Phi Beta Kappa and cum laude from the University of Washington with a BA in business administration. He holds an MBA with High Distinction from the Stern School of Business, New York University. Nate holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and is an active member of the CFA Institute and the CFA Society of Los Angeles.

Melissa Reagen, CRE

Managing Director & Portfolio Manager, Nuveen LLC

As Portfolio Manager, Melissa oversees all of the investment and portfolio allocation decisions for the U.S. Strategic Alternatives Fund. Prior to the portfolio management role, Melissa led a team of research and strategy professionals focused on the U.S. real estate market at Nuveen Real Estate which helped inform all investment decisions. During her time as head of U.S. research at Nuveen Real Estate, she has worked and collaborated closely with the company’s portfolio managers helping them make accurate investment recommendations across their portfolios. The result was a material shift towards the alternative property types across the platform. Melissa graduated with a B.A. in Economics from The University of Chicago and an M.B.A. from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business with concentrations in Finance, Econometrics and Statistics. She is a member of the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) Research Committee which ensures research remains a key focus of the organization and is a member of the PREA Research Affinity Group. She is also an Urban Land Institute (ULI) Member and part of the ULI IOPC Green Council. She has previously served as the Co-Chair of the NCREIF research committee and as well as the ICSC North American research task force, NAREIM, and the National Multifamily Housing Council.

Ken Shinoda, CFA

Founding Member, DoubleLine Capital LLC

Mr. Shinoda joined DoubleLine at inception in 2009. He is Chairman of the Structured Products Committee and oversees the non-Agency RMBS team specializing in investing in non-Agency mortgage-backed securities, residential whole loans and other mortgage-related opportunities. Mr. Shinoda is co-Portfolio Manager on the Total Return, Opportunistic Income, Income, Opportunistic MBS and Strategic MBS strategies. He is also lead Portfolio Manager overseeing the Mortgage Opportunities private funds. Mr. Shinoda is also a permanent member of the Fixed Income Asset Allocation Committee, as well as, participating in the Global Asset Allocation Committee. In addition, he hosts DoubleLine’s “Channel 11 News” (Twitter @DLineChannel11), a webcast series that provides market insights and commentary with peers and industry experts. Prior to DoubleLine, Mr. Shinoda was Vice President at TCW where he worked in portfolio management and trading. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California and is a CFA® charterholder.
 

Alan Snyder

Managing General Partner, Shinnecock Partners

Alan C. Snyder is the Managing General Partner of Shinnecock Partners, a 33-year-old family office investment boutique, and its investment funds, General Partner of Shinnecock Group, and Founder and CEO of aShareX. Alan was the Founder and non-Executive Board Chairman of Snap Insurance LLC; the Founder, CEO, President, and Chairman of the Board of Answer Financial Inc. and the Insurance Answer Center; CEO of Aurora National Life Assurance; Executive-in-Charge of Executive Life Insurance Company on behalf of the California Department of Insurance; President and COO of First Executive Corporation, a $20 billion life holding company; and Executive Vice President and member of the Board of Directors at Dean Witter Financial Services Group (a predecessor firm to Morgan Stanley). He managed most of the product areas and as part of a three-person team undertook the development of the Discover card. He is the former Chairman, President and Board Member of the Western Los Angeles Boy Scout Council. Mr. Snyder is a graduate of Georgetown University (WSJ Scholar) and Harvard Business School (Baker Scholar).
 

James Veneruso, CFA, CAIA, FRM

Vice President, State Street Global Advisors

James Veneruso, CFA, CAIA, FRM is a Vice President at State Street Global Advisors and Head of DC Product Strategy, Americas. In this role James is responsible for ensuring that State Street develops and maintains best-in-class defined contribution solutions with a particular emphasis on Target Date and Retirement Income solutions. James joined SSGA having previously held positions at Legal & General Investment Management and Callan and has been in the industry since 2007. Prior to this, James served in the Kingdom of Tonga as a volunteer with the United States Peace Corps.

James earned a B.S. in Economics and Computer Science from Vanderbilt University and an M.S. in Economics from the University of Illinois. He is a CFA charterholder, Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA) and certified as a Financial Risk Manager (FRM).

Todd White

Managing Director, Portfolio Management, Principal Real Estate

Todd is a managing director on the portfolio management team at Principal Real Estate. He is the fund manager of the Principal Enhanced Property Fund, LP on which he has worked since its inception in 2004. Todd joined the firm in 2000. Previously he worked for Clark Retail Enterprises (Chicago) as an acquisition manager and Deloitte as a senior auditor. Todd received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Northern Iowa in 1994 and was an Elijah Watts Sells Award bronze medalist on the May 1994 CPA exam. He is a member of the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA) and the National Association of Real Estate Investment Managers (NAREIM).

Karyn L. Williams, Ph.D.

Founder and Managing Principal, Hightree Advisors & Regional Investment Manager (North America), Zürich

Karyn Williams, PhD is the Regional Investment Manager, North America, Zurich Insurance, responsible for the implementing the strategic and tactical allocation of financial assets for Zurich North America’s businesses. Karyn is a member of the Global Investment Strategy and ZNA finance leadership teams. She supports various growth and strategic initiatives across the businesses. Karyn has more than 20 years of experience in financial markets, investment management, and institutional advisory practice. Prior to Zurich, Karyn founded Hightree Advisors, a firm that applies context-based investment decision analytics improve outcomes for investors. Prior to establishing Hightree, Karyn was the chief investment officer of Farmers Group Inc., head of client solutions at Two Sigma Advisers, and a principal and managing director at Wilshire Associates. Karyn is an independent public company director for BlackRock TCPC, an NACD Governance Fellow, and serves as finance chair, treasurer, and trustee for public and private foundations. She is an industry leader, author, and educator. Karyn graduated from Arizona State University, where she earned a B.S. in Economics and a Ph.D. in Finance.

Matthew Wolniewicz, AIF, AIFA

President, Income America

Throughout his 30-year career, Matt has been singularly focused on helping investors retire with confidence. As the president of Income America--an in-plan retirement income solution that provides retirees with 5% income for life--he leads the way in providing innovative, fiduciary-oriented solutions that enhance participants' retirement security. Matt is often quoted in the press and spoke in person at over 40 financial service events in 2022.

He is a member of Prime Capital Investment Advisors' advisory board, where he helps guide the firm's Qualified Plan Advisors and Financial Fitness for Life business units. Matt previously served as president of Fi360 until its acquisition by Broadridge in 2020. He also served as the executive business leader of Morningstar's Global Advisor and Wealth Solutions unit, the company's largest operating segment, where he was responsible for executing strategy and driving top-line revenue.

Passionate about fiduciary standards of excellence, Matt is an Accredited Investment Fiduciary (AIF) and Accredited Investment Fiduciary Analyst (AIFA).
 

Lisa Zard, CAIA, CSRIC

Wealth Advisor Consultant, Nuveen LLC

Lisa is a Private Wealth Advisor Consultant with over a decade’s experience in the field. Lisa partners with elite wealth advisors and institutions to build high impact portfolios designed to meet tailored investor objectives. Lisa brings deep expertise in traditional and alternative investments including public, private and ESG focused solutions. Portfolio construction, risk analysis, and strategy implementation are core to Lisa’s skill set. Lisa’s background and longstanding partnerships provide a strong foundation for delivering truly diversified and durable portfolios. Prior to joining Nuveen, Lisa served in similar consulting roles at J O Hambro Capital Management, Vivaldi Asset Management, Altegris and more. She also worked in investor relations and business development at GrizzlyRock, a hedge fund based in Chicago. Lisa graduated with a B.S. in Biology with a Minor in Art from San Diego State and is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst (CAIA®).